2 Chainz Album Release Party Shut Down by Police

On Wednesday night, 2 Chainz was geared up for a listening party for his new Pretty Girls Like Trap Music album—featuring record executives, music writers and friends in the hip-hop community. According to The New York Post’s Page Six, police shut the event down before it began. The story attributes the activity to the NYPD’s “Hip-Hop Cop” task force, charged with monitoring activity in the rap world.

Doors opened at 7:30 and the event was over within 15 minutes. The Post reports that 2 Chainz spent 45 minutes “desperately pleading” with cops to allow the event to continue. Law enforcement sources said the event didn’t obtain a proper permit.

A source told Page Six: “The police seemed to get joy out of shutting down this event for one of the hottest hip-hop artists. There were 200 industry people invited to the party, but they shut the doors once 74 were inside. Police threatened those in line with a summons if they did not vacate the area. 2 Chainz arrived with an entourage of 20, and they wouldn’t let them in. He waited outside for 45 minutes and tried to reason with the cops and the DOB to let his guests inside. He wasn’t screaming and yelling — he was disappointed.”

On Twitter, the rapper apologized for the snafu:

“Fire marshall shut down my listening!!! sorry to all my fans & supporters who got turned away. I will make up for it.”